Treatment of water and other liquids by ultra-violet rays.



SEN.

V. HENRI, A. HELBRONNER (I: M. VON RECKLINGHAU TREATMENT OF WATER AND OTHER LIQUIDS BY ULTRA VIOLET RAYS.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 31. I9I0. RENEWED AUG. I3 I9l7.

Patented May 21,1918.

5 SHEETS-SHEET I.

INVENTOKS VHen/i, A.Helbr0nne/; and M.v.HeckZi nyhausen by lizeirA-forney V. HENRI; A. HELBRONNER (I: M. VON RECKLINGHAUSEN.

TREATMENT OF WATER AND OTHER LIQUIDS BY ULTRA VIOLET RAYS.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 3I, I9l0. RENEWED AUG. I3. I9I7- Patented May 21, 1918.

5 SHEETSSH.EET 2.

/*i0 A29 Wfi p 10 V. HENRI, A. HELBRONNER & M. VON RECKLINGHAUSEN.

TREATMENT OF WATER AND OTHER LIQUIDS BY ULTRA VIOLET RAYS.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 3T. I910 RENEWED AUG. 13. 1917.

fiflflm Patented May 21,1918.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

INVENFOR 5 V1101: I-L',A.Helbr0ane4' V. HENRI, A. HELBRONNER (I; M. VON RECKLINGHAUSEN.

TREATMENT OF WATER AND OTHER LIQUIDS BY ULTRA VIOLET RAYS.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 3I. I9I0. RENEWEI AUG. I3. I9IT- Patented May 21, 1918 5 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

n 5 Rnu on mm FTbM 1 man A .LIR u Z by i/zez'r Afiarney I x 1: st ains PATENT crunchv c'Ton. nnu'nr, alt-nun nnnnnomvnn, AND Max von RECKLINGHAUSEN, on rears,

rnuncu, ASSIGNORS, BY. musnn ASSIGNMENTS, To THE In.

A CORPORATION'OF NEW YORK.

U. V. COMPANY, INC.,

TREATMENT 01E WATER. AND OTHER LIQUIDS BY ULTRA- VIOLET RAYS.

racacoa Specification of Letters Patent.

rammed May at, Tara.

Application filed October 31, 1910, Serial No. 589,995. Renewed .August '13, 1917. Serial No. 186,052.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, VICTOR HENRI and ANDRii IInLBRoNNER, citizens of the Repub- .lic of France, and MAX VON RECKLINGHAU- SEN, a subjectof the Emperor of Germany, residing at Paris, France, have invented the new and useful Improvement Relating to the Treatment of Water and other Liquids by Ultra-Violet Rays, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the treatment and sterilization of liquidsby means of ultra-violet rays, andparticularly to the sterilization of such liquids as are only slightly or not at all opaque to the rays, and'has for its object the construction of apparatus suitable for the purpose.

Sterilization apparatus of two difierent types has been previously described in the first of which the source of ultraviolet rays is located "above the liquid to be sterilized, and in the second of which the source of the rays is submerged in the liquid. In the first case, which can be applied in a simple Way only to liquids which are not under pressure, some of the rays are emitted in directions other than toward the liquid which is being sterilized, and therefore the apparatus is not'asefficient as would otherwise be the case. On theother hand, in apparatus Where a lamp constituting the 1 source of rays is itself submerged in the liquid which is being sterilizedit necessarily operates with a very low efficiency on account of the cooling of the lamp by the tus in which the liquid, for instance, water,-

is sterilized by means of sources, of ultraviolet rays which are placed. above the liquid and in our application for Letters Patent Serial No. 1 565612 vwe have described a method of sterilizing liquids in which the source of the ultra-vlolet rays. is immersed .the ult extent than those away. In order, t erefore, to secure unlformity of action onthe total bulk of water and the outer envelop being exhausted to a phi h vacuum. j

resent invention relates to improvehe mentsin the broad idea of treating liquids w1th ultra-violet rays by means of sources of ultra-violet rays located either above the .liquid or. in the liquid and in accordance therewith we shall now proceed to describe a number of forms of apparatus in which these improvements are embodied. This apparatus is particularly adapted to'the treatment of water for the purpose bf sterilizing the same.

Referring to the forms of apparatus in which the source of the ultra-violet rays is located above the liquid, it is important that a number of'principles should be carefully observed; The ultra-violet rays emitted by the lamp should'be utilized to their fullest extent in order that the cost of sterilization achiev by providing the lamps which emit -violet rays with reflectors, and by makmg or covering the walls of the chambers in which the water is treated with a highly reflecting surface, such as polished metal or glazed porcelain.

Now it. will-be obvious that as the ultramay bgygept as low as possible; this can be violet rays penetrate more deeply into the Water, they become less active and therefore the parts of the water nearest the ultraviolet-rays will be acted upon to. a greater arts which are farther treated, it is desirable to provide means for circulating the water through the apparatus, so that all parts of the same are acted upon to the necessary extent, and as far as possible to an e ualdegree. For this reason the water should in many cases be circulated 'to and fro within the sphere of action of the ultra-violet rays and guides or baflle plates may be provided for the purpose. Care shouldbe taken, however,'to so arrange the parts that such guides or bafle plates do not shelter any parts of the water from the rays. This object can generally be accom is well agitated.

For this reason the apparatus is constructed so that the water is thoroughly agitated by means of bafiie plates which cause eddy currents to be generated in the current of water or which impart a rotary or swirling movement to the same, and in some cases miniature waterfalls are created so that the water It will be apparent that the bactericidal effect of the ultra-violet rays will be all the more energetic the nearer the bacteria are to the source of the rays. In sterilizing a current of water flowing through a trough it is therefore desirable to regulate the duration of exposure of each component part of the current according to its distance from the'sourde of rays. If all the liquid were to flow underneath a lamp at a uniform speed, the duration of exposure would need to be regulated so as to completely sterilize those parts ofthe liquid which pass farthest remote from the lamp and this would cause an excessive expenditure of energy for the liquid immediately below the lamp. For the sake of economy it is therefore desirable to regulate the speed of the current of water in such a manner that the liquid nearest to the source of the rays flows at a greater speed than liquid which'is more remote from said source.

In the course of our researches on this subject, we have discovered that different kinds or species of bacteria possess very different degrees of susceptibility to the ultra-violet rays, and in particular we have found that certain pathogenic bacteria namely the germs of cholera, typhoid and eoli are more susceptible than are the innocuous organisms; that is to say, if a substance in 1 which both classes of organisms are present is subjected to the influence of ultra-violet rays, the pathogenic organisms mentioned will be killed in a shorter time than the others. Whether this law be absolutely true as regards all bacteria and similar low organisms or not we have not yet determined experimentally, but it appears to hold 1n regard to the organisms which are generally found in liquids such as water, milk, and fermented liquids such as beer, wine, cider, perry, vinegar and others produced by alco holic, lactic and acetic fermentation, and it is also true forall kinds of yeast and other fungi which are employed as organized ferments in the ferment'ations referred to.

In accordance with our invention we make use of this discovery by subjecting the liquids or ferments to the actlon of ultra-violet rays for a comparatively short period of time, which is not suflicient to render them absolutely sterile but which will kill substantially all the pathogenic'microbes that may be present; The time necessary can be determined by ordinary experimental means by examining what microbes remain in the liquor after various periods. In our process to make the water potable, we shall expose it twenty seconds to the action of ultraviolet rays and more generally only a fraction of the time necessary for the sterilization; this lowers naturally in a great proportion the eost of making water potable.

It should be understood that the apparatus constructed in accordance with this invention is equally suitable for making the water absolutely sterile, or for making it potable, that is to say, free from pathogenic bacteria, but still containing bacteria which are harmless to human life, for it is only a matter of altering the time factor or the rate of flow of the water through the plant.

As indicated above in sterilizing a current of liquid flowing through a trough it is desirable to regulate the duration of exposure of each component part of the current according to its distance from the source of the rays, and this also applies in the case of a closed conduit. Baflle plates may therefore be arranged at suitable positions in the conduit; the liquid passing above, below, or at the side of said baffle plates. The shape of the bafile plate can be made so as to obtain a frictional retardation of the liquid wherever it is required. The conduit itself may also be narrowed down near the lamps and widened-out away from the lamps, so that the speed of the liquid is greatest just as it is passing a lamp and in that part of the conduit in immediate proximity to the lamp.

In order that the nature of our invention may be clearly understood, we will now proceed to describe the same with reference to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a sectional elevation on the line IIII of Fig. 2, showing a sterilizing unit adapted for a water supply, Fig. 2 being a horizontal section of the same on the line II IIII of Fig. 1. Figs. 3 and l and Fig. 5 are sectional elevations of three further modifications. Figs. 6 and 7 are sectional elevations of a type of construction in which the water is adapted to pass by gravity near a vertically arranged lamp. Fig. 8 shows in vertical section a sterilizing element provided with a separate removable chamber for the lamp; Fig. 9 being a vertical section on the line lV-TV of Fig. 8; F 10 is a horizontal section on the line VV 'of Fig. 8 and Fig. 11 is a View in perspective of the lamp chamber and one of the baflle plates separated from the remaining parts of the apparatus; Figs. 12 and 13 show in vertical section modifications of the apparatus shown in Fig. 8 and Figs. 14 and 15 illustrate the manner in which the lamp chamber or quartzwindows are attached to the sterilizing chamber. Fig. 16 is a modified form of the apparatus shown in vertical section which is provided with bafiie plates for regulating the speed of the liquid, Fig. 17 being a vertical section of a modified form of constructionand Fig. 18 is a perspective view of a sterilizing conduit adapted to regulate the speed of the liquid which is being treated, Fig. 19 being a cross section on the line Vl[][-Vl[l[ of Fig.

'18, and Fig.20 being a cross section on the line VIII-VH1 of Fig. l8.- Figs 21 is a modified form of construction in sectional elevation while Fig. 22 is a sectional view on the line IXIX of F ig.'21. Fig. 23 is a modifi ezd form of the devices shown in Figs. 6 and The form of apparatus shown in Figs. 1-

and 2 comprises a cylindrical tank 54. in the upper part or cover of which the lamp 19 is located. In the lower part of the apparatus partitions or balfles and 56 are arranged in the form of truncated cones lying onewithin the other the innermost 55 of these cones being preferably made of the greater height. A centrally located tube .57 leads from the innermost cone through the bottom of the tank and forms the delivery pipe to the apparatus. One or more apertures 58 are provided in certain of the innercones to permitgthe water to pass therethrough. The inlet for the water is shown at 59 and is so arranged that water is admitted to the outercompartment 60 of they tank in a tangential direction so that it flows through the compartment with a circular motion until it reaches such a height that it flows over the edge of the outermost cone 56 into the inner compartment 61, where the rotary motion is continued. At the bottom of this compartment it passes through the aperture 58 into a central compartment 62 where it rises until it overflows into. the delivery tube 57 and flows away from the outlet 53. Th'e delivery tube is provided with cross baflie plates 63 for the purpose of checking too violent rotary motion of the liquidl Near the top of the cylindrical tank a bafile plate 64: is'arranged to prevent the water creeping up the sides of the apparatus into the cover of the same. As shown in Fig. 1 the lamp 19 is located in such a position thatthelight proceeds approximately from Flt the apex of the truncated cones sothat the baffle plates55 .and 56 do not castshadows and the light has free access to all parts ofthe liquid. The circular motion which is given to the water as it passes through the apparatus causes it,.to be thoroughly agitated which, as has already been pointed out; is

, get stagnant therein. A window is provided as shown at 66 in order that the operation of the lampmay be watched.

In a sterilizing element of this type the water flows through the apparatus by virtue of the pressure in the water mains and may.

be collected in a cistern. The cover of the tank is not hermetically sealed so that the lamp operates'in air at ordinary atmospheric pressure and no device is necessary for making up any deficiencyof air. If desired the lamp may be mo'unted on a frame in such a way that it can be tilted from the outside of the apparatus without removing the cover I of the tank.

In anotherform of construction Figs. 3

and 4, the container or tank has a rectangu lar base 67, two of the sides 68 converging toward the hood 69 where the Famp 19 is located. Baflle plates 70 are arranged in a radial direction from the lamp toward the base of the apparatus so as to form a number of compartments 71. The water enters near the bottom of the tank at 72 and passes successively through the compartments 71 until it reaches the outlet 73. The

apertures 74 leading from one compartment to the next are arranged alternately in the top and bottomof the battle plates 70.

Drain cocks 65- are also provided for emp' tying the chambers of water when the apparatus is not in use.

In the modification of the apparatus 4 shown in Fig. 5 the tank has a curved base 75, the liquid being admitted by the two inlets'76 into the two outermost compartments. The water flows through the various chambers as shown by thearrows toward the center of the sterilizing element until it reaches the innermost compartment let 78. I In Fig. 6 the sterilizing element takes the form' of a vertical tubular tank 79 a 77 fromwhence it'flows away by the out I lamp 19'being suspended vertically approxi 'mately in the middle of the same. j The construction of the apparatus is adapted to' provide the necessary agitation of'the water While under the influence of the ultra-violet rays without causing obstructions which might prevent the rays from reaching some 5 part of the liquid. Furthermore the water is made to pass the lamp in close proximity thereto so that sterilization can be rapidly effected. Around the walls of the tank baffle plates 81' and 82 are arranged at right angles to the lamp tube and located in sets so that the bafiie plates, overlap one an! other to a considerable extent. The water enters at the top of the apparatus at 84 and 'flows through the tank, falling from one baffle plate on to'the next underneath until it reaches theoutlet 85. A series of miniature waterfalls is thus obtained so that the water is thoroughly agitated while it is being submitted to the action of the rays and where the water to be sterilized contains a ter in suspension. In a modified form of construction shown in Fig. 7 the lamp 19 is surrounded by means of an envelop '86 made of material permeable'to the ultra-violet.rays such as I micaor quartz, and the baflle plates 80 and 83 are alternately mounted on the walls of 30 the tank and the envelop respectively. In

this construction the'water to be sterilized in passing through the apparatus, generally fills the same and the baffle plates serve to give the necessary motion to the liquid to secure thorough sterilization. The space between the lamp and its envelop 86 will preferably be exhausted of air in order to prevent the lamp from being cooled by the water and vice versa the water from being unduly heated by the lamp. Furthervmore, the exhaustion of the intermediate space has the advantage that absorption of ultra-violet rays by the air is prevented so that the full power of the rays is utilized. The sterilizing element shown in Figs. 8 to 11 comprises "an outer chamber or casmg 135 providedwith baflle plates 136 for gu1d1ng the water in a circuitous path through the apparatus. This chamber is provided with an opening 137 at the top through which the lamp chamber 138 is inserted. The lamp chamber 138 is [constructed to accommodate the lamp 19 which is arranged longitudinally in the lower part.

- the luminous tube of the lamp and is provided withthree quartz windows 139, one at each side and one underneath the lamp, or these three sides may be replaced by one quartz channel. Pockets 140 are provided for receiving the two ends 141 of the lamp. The lamp 19 is pivotally suspended at one endby means of a collar from the bracket 142 mounted on the wall of the lamp chamthe apparatus will be particularly useful' The lamp chamber is narrowed alongside ber. The other end of the lampis pivotally connected to a rod 143 which is attached to the armature 144 of an electro-magnet 145 also mounted in the lamp chamber. The lamp chamber is provided with flanges 146 adapted tofit closely over the edges 147 of the opening of the sterilizing chamber and a cover 148 is provided for the top of the lamp chamber. The liquid, water for ex:

ample, is admitted to the apparatus through the opening 149 and flows in the direction shown by the arrows until it reaches the outlet 150. In the outlet pipe of the ap-v paratus is a swinging baffle plate 151 adapts ed to fully close the section of the water tance commercially is that the lamp chamber is readily removed from the remainder of the apparatus so that the 'quartz windows can be cleaned and attended to when necessary and the lamp is very easily accessible.

It will be observed that the baffle plates 136 are arranged radially from the lamp so that no shadows are formed and the liquid which is being sterilized is at all times directly exposed to the ultra-violet rays.

In Fig. 12 there is shown a modified form of construction of the apparatus above described with reference to Figs. 8 to 11. It comprises a sterilizing tank 135 provided with bafile plates 136. The top of the sterilizing tank is formed by two sides 154 and 155 which slope downward toward the middle, leaving an opening where the quartz channel or windows 139 is or are mounted. The lamp chamber or hood 156 is mounted on the sterilizing tank' with hermetically tight joints and is constructed so that it can be removed from the sterilizing tank 135 and the lamp 19 is mounted therein, an automatic electro-magnetie tilting device 145 be-' mg provided for operating the lamp at starting. If desired a vacuum may be created in the lamp chamber. The liquid, for instance water, is admitted through the inlet 149 and passes in the direction shown by the arrows through the apparatus, whereby it is exposed to the ultra-violet rays emitted by the lamp which penetrate through the. window 139. The liquid after sterilizat1on 1s delivered through the outlet 150.

Fig. 13 shows a development of the forms of construction already described with reference to Figs. 8 to 12. In this case the chamber 157 as a cylindrical form and the lamp 19 is supported in a chamber or-tubularwindow 158 located axially in the mlddle of the cylindrical chamber. i plates 136 are provided alternately on t e walls of the tank and the lamp chamber as shown. The inlet 149 is situated near to the outlet 150 but separated therefrom by the partition 159 so that the liquid in passing through 'the apparatus makes a complete circle around the lamp chamber, and at the same time makes a circuitous or zigzag path as shown by the arrows,'o n account of the bafie plates 136. The sterilizing chamber 157 and the lamp chamber 158 may be divided l5 longitudinally as indicated for convenience in assembling the parts in position around the lamp.

Figs. 14: and show how a lamp chamber somewhat similar to that illustrated in Fig.

' 12 may be secured in the sterilizing tank.

The upper flange 160 is bolted to the edges of the sterilizing tank and side flanges 161 are provided on the ends of the lamp chamber which project through the sides of the tank; these side flanges being clamped tothe sides of the tank with suitable packing to preventv leakage.

As hereinbefore. mentioned, in order to obtain the greatest efficiency it is desirable a to so arrange the apparatus that the speed v mounted a bafie plate'192 is arranged with passages 193 near to the channels 186. The

liquid, as it. flows through the openings where the cross'section is reduced, will have a greater speed than in the main portion of 5 the conduit. In Fig. 16 there is" also shown a a feature which has been demonstrated by practical experience to be of great impor- The ap' aratus" so t at the.

- cessive expenditure of energy.

tance and value. It was a discovery of ours" that liquids which are permeable to ultra 5o violet rays, such as perfectly clear water,

cannot completely and effectively be sterilized by a source of ultra violet rays, unless while exposed to such rays, it is agitated so that no bacteria can remain in the shadow .of particles impervious to such rays and thus escape the germicidal efl'ect of the "rays. To eflect .such complete sterilization, therefore, the agitation or turning over and over of the liquid under treatment must be very 6 thorough Y By .the use of bafie plates, such as shown in Fig. 16, this result is accomplished to a very perfect degree, but in thls figure we a trough'or conduit through which the below the lamp is trapezoidal in form, as

sources of ultra violet rays, placed at diflerent positions with reference to the flowing stream of liquid so that their rays combine to produce an illuminated zone. So, therefore, evenif the agitation be not complete, all portions of the water will be exposed to the rays, the lamps themselves or the casings in which they are contained constituting baflles or obstructions to the flow of the liquid and ,assist in the turning over of the water. This use of a plurality of sources of rays may be, of course, extended indefinitely, with the most advantageous results. Fig. 17 shows a modified form of construc tion in which bafiie plates 192 are "mounted midway between the adjacent lamp chan-. nels 186, and the liquid flowing above the baflie plates and just below the lamp channels will have a greater speed than that flowingat the bottom of the recesses between adjacent bafie plates 192. By this means the speed of the liquid in diflerent' parts of the conduit is so regulated that all parts of the liquid are exposed for a sulficient period of time to become sterilized without any part being subjected-to an ex- Another form'of apparatus for achievin this object is shown in Figs. 18, 19, and 20, in which the sterilizing chambercomprises 9% liquid to betreated is caused to flow. The

lamp 19 is supported in a channel 186 which is constructed wholly or in part of a material such as quartz which is permeable to the ultra-violet rays. If it is assumed that 166 the part of the lamp which emits the rays in the greatest concentration is located approximately over the middle of the conduit, the liquid at the surface immediately below the middleof the lampwill be exposed to rays of greater activity than theliquid at the sides and bottom of the conduit. In order to cause the liquid near the surface to flow more rapidly than the liquid at the bottom of the trough, baflle plates 194 are ar- 11a ranged in the conduit having a triangular notch or gate 195 therein, the apex of which is situated in the. lower part of the bafie' plate as shown. The upper part of the liquid'will flow through the wide opening at 1a greater speed than the lower part of the same, which flowsthrou h the reduced opening and where greater riction is oflered to the. progress of the current of liquid. The cross section of the conduit immediately 12a shown in Fig. 20, that is to say, the sides 200 converge toward the lamp channel 186. Where the bafile plates are located the cross section of the conduit is rectangular and the cross section gradually changes from a trapezoid to a rectangle and vice versa bei have also shown a' plurality of lamps or tween the positionof the lamp channel and bafile plates. Since in theneighborhood of the lamp the conduit is wider at the bot-' tom than it is at the top the liquid will flow more'rapidly just below the lamp than at' the bottom which is farther from the lamp and where the ultra-violet rays are less effective.

In the form of construction shown in Flg. 21 the cover of the sterilizing conduit 198 slopes down, as shown at 197, toward the lamp channel 186. The bottom of the chamber is provided with corrugations or baflie plates 199 which provide a circuitous path for the liquid flowing at the bottom of the conduit, as shown in Fig. 22. Thus the liquid flowing immediately under the lamp has a 'free passage whereas liquid at the bots tom of the trough is obstructed by the corrugations or bafile plates and caused to flow slowly. k

In the alternative form illustrated by Fig. 23 the baffle plates are substituted by a helicalgroove 87 on the Walls of the tank so that the liquid passes in a spiral direction around the lamp, from the inlet 84 until it flows away through the outlet 85.

It will be obvious that other methods of achieving the same results may be devised and that two or more of the above methods for regulating the speed of the liquid may be combined dependingupon the nature of the suitable forcarrying out thisobject, but We wish it to be understood that we claim the use of the various forms of apparatus herein described and modifications thereof for treating liquids generally with ultra violet rays, Furthermore, in connection with the treatment of water it is sometimes advantageous, as indicated above, to carry out a partial sterilization, that is to say, sufficient to destroy the noxious organisms but to leave many of the innocuous bacteria unharmed, and such treatment is considered to beincludedunder the term sterilization.

What we claim is 1. The method of sterilizing liquids by the action thereon of ultra violet rays, which consists in causing a body of liquid to pass through a receptacle in the field of such rays and under the direct sterilizing influence of the same, and carrying the said liquid, in the form of a rapidly moving film, in the immediaction thereon of ultra violet rays, which consists in causing the liquid to flow through compartments in a receptacle in the field of such rays and under the direct sterilizing influence of the same and carrying said liquid, in the form of a thin and rapidly moving. fihn, across the region in immediate proximity to the source of rays in its passage from one of the compartments to another.

3. The method of sterilizing liquids by the action thereon of ultra violet rays, which consists in passing a body of the same through a receptacle and carrying the liquid in a thin and rapidly moving film through the region in the immediate vicinity of-the source of rays and under the direct sterilizing influence of the same, and agitating the liquid duringits passage through thereceptacle, whereby all portions of the same will be exposed to the sterilizing influence of the rays.

4. The method of sterilizing liquids by the action thereon of ultra violet rays, which consists in passing a body of such liquid through a receptacle in the field ofsuch rays and under the directsterilizing influence o the same, causing the liquid to pass throu h the region in the immediate vicinity of t e source in a thin and rapidly moving film, ;and to flow in large and more sluggish masses at points more remote therefrom, whereby opportunity will be given to expose all portions of the liquid to sterilizing action while passing through the apparatus.

- 5. The method of sterilizing liquids by the action thereon of ultra violet rays, which consists in passin a body of such liquid through a receptac e in the field of such rays and under the direct sterilizing influence of the same, causing the liquid to pass through the region in the immediate vicinity of the source of. rays in a thin film with a swirling motion, and toward and from such region in a moreslowly moving mass whereby all portions of the liquid will be exposed to the action of the rays.

6. The method of sterilizing liquids herein "described, which consists in passing a body of such liquid in proximity to and under the direct influence of a plurality of sources of ultra violet rays placedindiiferent position with reference to the line of flow, whereby the liquid will be subjected to the effect of rays acting in more than one direction thereon.

7 The method ofsterilizing liquids herein described, which consists in passing a body of such liquid in proximity to and under the direct lnfluence of a plurality of sources of mes es ultra violet rays placed in difl'erent positions with reference to the line of flow, and maintaining the liquid in its passage in agitation, so that all parts of the same will be subjected to the efi'ect of such rays acting thereon in more than one direction.

'8. The method of sterilizing liquids herein described, which consists in passing a body of liquid through the zone or region of the combined or intersecting rays from a plumlity of sources of ultra violet rays arranged in difl'erent positions with reference to the flow of such liquid.

In testimony whereof We have hereunto subscribed our names this 17th day of 15 October, 1910.

VIGTQR HENRI. ANDRE HELBRONNER. MAX VON RECINGHAUSEN.

Witnesses:

H. C; Com, JOHN BAKER. 

